


Mass Effect: Liberation

by Rafael



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: AU, Batarians, Gen, Khar'Shan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-01
Updated: 2016-04-06
Packaged: 2017-12-28 03:39:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 20
Words: 11,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/987225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rafael/pseuds/Rafael
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While the galaxy prepares to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the end Reaper Invasion, the batarian people languish in refugee camps all along the Terminus System. One batarian aims to change all that and return his people to their home world. A world free of the old prejudices and fears.  </p><p>Khar'shan, a free world for a free people.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Liberation

**Author's Note:**

> This is a spinoff from my main fic, Mass Effect: After Earth Chronicles.

Combat boots trampled fresh snow into mud. This refugee camp at the edge of the New Canton colony was like a dozens others he visited during the last ten years , a hive of pre-fabs stacked three and four high. This one shivered under a steel grey sky, another baked under a relentless desert sun, and a third laid deep within the dirty slums of a human city. Regardless of the weather or location, children played with sticks or frayed dolls, no one looked him in the eye and everyone stuck to the shadows. Whatever caste they belong to or position the once held, now they all shared the same fate, that of a broken people.

He spotted a large rock in the middle of a square. He climbed atop the massive piece of granite and looked down at his fellow batarians. With a push of a button he activated speakers built into his armor.

"I am Jatak, once of House K'adar," a few adults approached the base of the stone, "You have heard of me and of the Assembly. You have probably heard of our pledge, 'A free world for a free people'," the crowd grew larger, all eyes on Jatak. "But what does that mean? Right now? Does it mean restoration? A return to our glorious path? A rebuilding of what was lost?" He paused. The people in the crowd looked at each other in bewilderment. "Right now it means absolutely nothing."

He pressed on before the crowd exploded in anger, "No, there is no turning back. We are here, wallowing in the mud, because of the lies and empty propaganda of those who chose their own power above the needs of their people. The old prophecies warned of what was to come, of the evil that lay in the darkness. But when they discovered the truth, that we were not alone in the universe, they turned the prophecies into instruments of fear. Fear of the alien, fear of the slave...fear of each other. Instead of warning the galaxy of what was to come, we festered in our supposed superiority. Instead of making allies, we made enemies. Instead of leading the races of this cycle into the defense of life itself, we turned our backs on them. Worst of all, when the time came, our glorious leaders betrayed us to the Enemy. We saw siblings, lovers, children and friends turned into abominations to serve the demons from dark space.

Murmurs rippled through crowd. Some nodded vigorously.

And now while the other races celebrate the end of the war, we languish here, forgotten and afraid. So what are we to do, you ask, what can we do? We can rise to the occasion. A few among us have already taken the first steps. We have reached out and found allies among the other races. But that is not enough. It will not be krogan armies, turian fleets or volus credits that will change our lot. Only by our own sacrifices can we redeem ourselves, not in the eyes of others, but in our own eyes. We shall seek a rebirth of our people, unbound and unafraid. I know that I place upon your shoulders a heavy burden, one that few will willing or able to carry. There is no sin in that. It is merely the truth. I can only hope that a few will step forward and lead the way. That you will find in your hearts the strength to be heroes, the strength to do what needs to be done. As for my part, I can only promise that I will share any burden in order to restore our home world. I may never see Khar'shan," he looked down at a young child who sat at the edge of the boulder,"but I know that when the day comes, when the call rings out across the galaxy for our people to return to the embrace of our home world, then we shall know what it means to live in a free world as a free people."

Jatak stepped down from the rock and walked away. One by one, two dozen batarians emerged from the crowd and followed him.

They took their first steps in the path to liberation.

For themselves,

For those who would follow,

For us all....


	2. Dragon Riders

Los Dragones Training Range, Bekenstein, Boltzmann System, Serpent Nebula

<RED AIR CLEAR>

<ROGER ALPHA ONE, DELTA TWO-NINER ON APPROACH. MUSIC ON>

Rodan Quintus tracked Delta squadron ingress into the target area on the holo table. The movement of the holographic symbols matched their counterparts across the valley. Fighter swept in, amidst a flurry of simulated gun and missile fire. White puffs filled the air. Rodan smiled. White meant a miss, yellow meant a near hit, enough to deplete the fighters kinetic barriers and red meant a direct hit. The guns fired practice rounds, enough to take down kinetic barriers but lacked the punch of live rounds. But this was a life fire exercise and Delta packed the real deal. Explosions rocked the valley as missiles found their target.

<DELTA TWO-NINER TO ECHO FIVE-TWO. ANTI-AIR NEUTRALIZED. LANDING ZONE CLEAR>

Other eyes watched the choreographed maneuvers with keen interest. The observers of today's exercise were Major Galeena T'iala, military adviser to of Batarian Assembly, Marine Captain Paul Girard, the Alliance observer and a Council Specter, Ashley Williams. Their presence turned a regular exercise into a political theater. At least Galeena was not one to play politics. A pair of Mantis Mk. VIs strafed the landing zone. A flock of rocket drones dropped from the gunship's under wing pylons. The drone engaged target dummies around the perimeter of the target zone.

<DATALINKS ONLINE. TARGET ZONE CLEAR ECHO FIVE-NINER INBOUND>

Three assault shuttles escorted by two gunships flew in, meters of the ground. The shuttles slowdown. Doors swung open both sides of the shuttles. Troops jumped off and the shuttles flew away.

<DRONE HAND OFF TO TYCHO ONE>

Exercise judges detonated two drones to simulate an attack from the crags on the LZ right flank. The platoon tech direct another pair drones in that direction. The drones suppress the area with missile and gunfire. Once the position appeared on the drones targeting sensors, the platoon leader called in the gunships to destroy position. A short volley of missiles neutralized the threat.

<TYCHO LEAD TO BASE LZ SECURE>

"Excellent work, Mr. Quintus," said the Specter.

Major Girard spoke before Rodan could answer, "I suppose it should not be surprising. After all batarians are experts at quick raids on lightly defended targets."

"These men are not slavers, Major," said Galeena with her best death glare.

It surprised Rodan that Girard responded with hands behind his back straight and chin out, "Perhaps, but my superiors are concerned about what happens after we arm these batarians. Who says they will not turn against us in the future?"

Galeena fist's balled, "I do."

While Girard had a point, he also knew that Galeena had a short fuse and a powerful biotic reach.

"Your superiors as well as mine voted to back up the Assembly, Major. The Council prefers the batarians fighting to liberate their world instead of raiding our colonies and I for once, agree," said the Specter.

This time Girard averted his eyes, "Well that is true, I guess. But these are just a handful of troops, long time Assembly loyalist. It will take more than this to take back a Reaper invested planet."

"We have plenty of ground troops on the training pipeline, Captain Williams, but we need more pilots and maintenance crews. Unless we delay our time table, we will have to rely on my people to conduct aerospace support," said Rodan.

"No can do, Mr. Quintus. The Council wants results and we already our first target," said the Specter.

"Where?" asked Rodan.

"Erzbat. We are talking the fight directly to batarian territory," said the Specter.

 _"Ready or not, here we go,"_ thought Rodan.


	3. Alliances

"You wanted to see me, Wrex," said Clan Chief Turtman.

Wrex stood in a balcony overlooking the Kelphic valley, "Yeah. Good work on Lorek."

"It was easy. The only real opposition was inside the bomb factory. The local militia couldn't handle real troops," said Turtman.

"Good, cause I'm sending you out to help the batarians take back their home world," said Wrex.

"Why?"

"Politics," said Wrex. He walked into the room, a large sand with miniatures stood in the middle. He looked an intricate array of buildings, parks and roads. It was the master plan for Tuchanka's newest city.

"Whose, ours or the Council's?" asked Turtman.

"Both. The Council wants a stable Terminus to stop the pirates and slavers. We need the Council's continued good will to rebuild Tuchanka."

"And what does that have to do with batarians?"

"Help the batarians and through them we keep the Council happy and out of our noses," said Wrex.

"Hmm, maybe, but they need army, not just a krogan battle group," said Turtman.

"My sources say that they are putting together a good one. Lots of former mercs, war veterans, volunteers, but they are thin on heavy hitters, and nobody hits harder than krogan," said Wrex. He chuckled, "So, are you going to finish what you started in Lorek?"

Turtman shook his green fringed head, "I always thought you were a crazy old man, with crazy ideas, but when you came back, I listened and," he moved to balcony. He looked down on the Kelphic valley. There hundreds of thousands of krogans built, worked and played, "you cured the genophage, all of this is because of you. So, if this is a our way forward, then you can count on me."

Wrex joined him at the balcony, "Good. One more thing. The Council sent a Specter to oversee operations. Human, female, Alliance, and a damned good soldier. I should know, I fought with her. She was part of the team that helped Shepard stop Saren and the Reapers."

"So?"

"So, if she talks, you listen. I certainly do," said Wrex.

"You gone soft old man," said Turtman with a hearty laugh.

"Women have some good ideas," he pointed at the valley below, "and sometimes it pays to listen."

"My daughters would agree," said Turtman.

Together the watched Aralakh dipped below the horizon.


	4. Negotiations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Batarian Assembly's spokesperson goes to Omega for some brief, if tricky, negotiations.

The backroom's walls thrummed to the rhythm of the music coming from _Gozu_ district least reputable dance bar. A cone of light illuminated the poker table top in the middle of the room. Jotun, _Beyond_ 's batarian owner, sat at the table surrounded by bodyguards. Smoke wafted past his nose as he waited for his guest. The noise from outside spiked the moment the door opened. Three figures entered. Another batarian sat opposite Hokum.

"So,what brings the mighty Jatak to the finest establishment in Omega? I have to say I've enjoyed your speeches so far, inspiring stuff," said Hokum. The end of his cigarette flared with each long drag, briefly illuminating his face before it disappeared into the darkness beyond the light.

"Hokum," said Jatak, his figured cloaked in shadow.

Hokum leaned into the light,"Anything I can do for the voice of the great Batarian Assembly?" he asked with a glint in his upper eyes.

"Sparing me the sarcasm would be nice," said Jatak.

"I'll try. Anything else?" asked Hokum.

Jatak leaned into the light. He stared at Hokum's four eyes, "I want to know what happened to my recruiters."

"Recruiters? What re-"

"Spare me the varen shit. Three of them, all murdered in the last month," said Jatak.

"Three you say? Well, I don't know anything about that. Then again, Omega is a dangerous place. It's a place full of criminals and predators plus the odd hungry ghost, if you believe in such things," said Hokum with a grin full of yellow smoke tainted teeth.

"I don't, Hokum. But I do believe in greedy batarians willing to sell anyone for a quick credit, even to Cerberus," said Jatak.

"Again, I don't know what you're talking about, Jatak. But if I were you I would not bandy that word around here. It makes people nervous," said Jotun. His upper eyes glanced left to right, his lower ones in the opposite direction. There was a flurry of movement in the dark behind behind.

Jatak spotted the tell of someone looking for a way out, "Cerberus? Why not? I mean, slavery is one thing, but selling biotic kids to a human supremacy group bent on creating super soldiers for their cause is quite another. Same thing with cooperating with the same group in taking over Omega." Jatak leaned back, "Mind you, a lot folks around here, except the humans, because they are no more humans on Omega anymore, remember Cerberus atrocities, specially against turians and," he let the pregnant pause hang in the air for a few seconds, "batarians."

"Accusations without proof are meaningless, Jatak," snarled Hokum.

"You are absolutely right, which is why I provided undeniable proof to your associates ," someone leveled the barrel of a gun to Hokum's forehead,"or should I say, former associates, before coming here," said Jatak. He stood up, "I'm a big believer in giving everyone a chance. Sadly, you... missed yours." He looked up to the Hokum's bodyguards, "Gentlemen, after you are done here you can visit our new recruiting station in _Afterlife_. The Assembly's offer of well paying work calibrated to your particular skill sets still stands."

Jatak left the room. The music from the dance floor muffled the sound of a distant gunshot.

"Once a traitor....," said Jatak as he left the club.


	5. Labyrinth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Secrets never stay buried or forgotten.

"Left, right, then up and left again," said Iblis'Siphs.

He spoke aloud as he went, just like all the Miracle Men did in Triptych station. They were a cadre of systems engineers, software specialist and handymen that kept the two thousand year old station running. The volus built it during their exploration phase. Back then their pressure suit technology was not reliable, so they built space stations with environmental systems tailored to their biology. That meant massive mass effect field generator to simulate Irune's heavy gravity and high pressure atmosphere. After a couple of hundred years they decommissioned the station which made the perfect base for Krogan pirates after the rebellions. The krogan used the generators to power kinetic barrier projectors. That did not stop the turians from kicking them out. They in turn used Triptych as a patrol base in the Kepler Verge. After they left, all manner of slavers, pirates and raiders took over. But through out the station's long history only the Miracle Men could keep it from falling apart. No one else knew their way around the maze of systems graphed into each other over the centuries.

"No, wait, left and then down," said Iblis.

He pushed through a jungle of dangling wires. Panels jutted out of the corridor walls at sharp angles. He darted from one patch of light to the next that came from the back of the odd holo advertising station. Temperatures varied wildly. One moment he walked through a dense cloud of hot fog, the next he tiptoed through a ice rimmed catwalk. Every few steps he stopped, held his breath and stared at the shadows behind him.

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine...and...ten."

He had a good reason to be paranoid. It came with his side job as an information broker. Access to the stations systems allowed him to watch everyone and everything that happened on board. He then sold the information to whoever was willing to pay. He never met his clients face to face, of course. He used his, "little birds" a collection of contacts throughout the station, most of them were prostitutes working in the dozen or so brothels and sex clubs on Triptych. He would send an information packet to his little bird, they would read it and then whisper it in the target's ear. Iblis stashed the credits away waiting for the day he could retire as far away from the station as possible. Yet even he knew his limits. He had a no blab list filled with people who he tracked but never sold information about them lest it come back to hunt them. At the top of that list was one Mr. Aten.

Mr. Aten, the Drell assassin.

Mr. Aten, who was asking about him through his contacts.

Mr. Aten, who suddenly had dropped out of sight, yet as far as Iblis knew had not left the station.

Iblis tripped and fell down face first. He turned on his back and stared at a dark turquoise face that blended with the shadow.

That Mr. Aten.

"I..I..oh gods...I never, please don't..."sputtered Iblis.

"Mr. Iblis'Siphs Si'inn, if my employers wanted you terminated I would be inspecting your corpse right now," said Mr. Aten in a raspy baritone.

"Right, so anything I can do you for you. You want some info, yes? Cheap?" said Iblis.

"That is exactly exactly what I'm looking for, Mr. Si'inn. Do you know the location of the _Leynaya_?"

"The...ooooh right, the _Leynaya_ ," said Iblis.

"Yes, and before you ask, I am authorized to terminate you if the information proves to be inaccurate," said Mr. Aten.

The _Leynaya_ , the reason why Iblis was so good at his job. A testbed for cobbled up stolen alien tech, from cyclonic barrier generators to super-sized eezo cores. Called a "battlecruiser" by the batarian Central Command. A ship with the firepower of a dreadnought but the cost, maneuverability and speed of a cruiser. When the Reapers came the project leader ordered her abandoned and swore all her crew to absolute secrecy. He had left her behind and never looked back. Now she stared back at him through Mr. Aten's cold dark green eyes.

Iblis got up, "I know where she is."

"Good. Please come with me Mr. Si'inn. We have much to talk about ."


	6. News

Rodan waited for Galeena outside the briefing room. They come up with a risky multistage plan to attack a group of pirates before they launched an raid on Lorek. He was confident that his part of the plan would work. It all came down to the timing. The risky part was on Galeena's side. A ground assault on an mining site with a one hundred and fifty meter shaft connecting several chambers that housed hundreds of enemy soldiers. Either shock action would carry the day or they would have to drop a neutron bomb down the shaft and hope for the best. The Batarian Assembly wanted to keep damage to the facility as well as casualties on both sides as low as possible. Irradiating an entire eezo mining complex was not the way to accomplish either goal. To complicate matters further the Council demanded that a Specter supervise all combat operations. If she didn't like what she saw the Council would pull their support and the whole thing. So far Specter Williams had kept her eyes opened and her mouth shut. Galeena saw it as a good sign. Rodan was too busy with making sure his pilots where up to snuff to care.

Galeena came down the corridor with a hard expression on her golden freckled face. Their former boss, Thompson-Ramos, said that it displayed her, "Serious serenity," but there was nothing serene about the worry lines around her eyes.

"Major?" asked Rodan.

"The Colonel got shot," said Galeena.

"What?"

"In the Presidium on his way back from visiting the human councilor," said Galeena.

"Is he...." Rodan refused to accept the inevitable.

"He's stable. They have him in Huerta Memorial. Miss Lawson is with him. Thought you should know as soon as possible," said Galeena.

"Damn. Any idea whose behind it?" asked Rodan.

"No. But like I said Miss Lawson is with him. She'll let us know if the situation changes."

They spent the last decade as a team. They faced long odds and always came on top. Now when their former boss needed them the most they were light years away.

Rodan put a hand on Galeena's shoulder, "It's not too late to turn this ship around and head straight for the Citadel."

Galeena squeezed Rodan hand and sighed, "We have a job to do. Let's go."


	7. Hammer

The carriers _Pegasus_ , _Prometheus_ and _Daedalus_ , joined by _Chimera_ launched their collection of space fract on the opposite side of the planet. The combine force then circled the tidal locked dwarf planet in a sub-orbital path. The moment strike package crossed the horizon into Soluvus sun light side Rodan's radio crackled to life.

<Alpha Strike commencing attack runs>

<Agamemnon and Herakles engaging enemy warships>

<Tallyho! Gulaga class strike fighters at ten o'clock low>

Rodan responded, <Ranger flight engaging>

Rodan spotted the two reverse gull wing fighters below them. The Gulaga class was eighty year old batarian design popular in the Terminus. It could carry up to thirty six missiles wing mounts. A single pass could destroy dozens of vehicles. It was bomb truck compared to the Radan's F-61 sport scar of a fighter. Ranger flight, with Rodan in the lead dove to attack. The number two of the pair turned on it's axis to point it's quad cannons at Ranger flight. An effeictive if punishing maneuver in vacuum but Soluvus traced atmosphere and low gravity was enough to make the fighter wobble from side to side. It sprayed fire toward Ranger flight as it decelerated. Rodan balanced his fighters nose with light taps on the rudders to keep the pipper on the target. He fired two quick burst from his guns. The Gulaga's barriers dissapeared on contact with the first burst. The second burst punched through the cockpit and detonated the fighter's eezo core. Pieces of the wing blew off in different directions.

<Ranger Two to Ranger Leader, Enemy fighter making a run for it>

<Roger Ranger Two>

Ranger flight banked to the right and went into a shallow diver. Below them surviving enemy fighter skimmed the surface in a vain attempt to escape. A beep in his helmet told Rodan had lock on the target. He pressed the fire button on the right control column first. A feint smoke trail flew from underneath the fighter.

_Three, two one...._

He fired a second second missile at the target. Both missiles arched upwards and then dove at the Gulaga. The pilot banked sharply to the left. The first missile sent a column of frozen dirt on impact. The enemy banked to the right to avoid a collision with a dune. The second missile hit the right side wing root. The fighter tumbled on the broken wing. It carved a debris field half a kilometer long along the frozen ground.

<Two for two. Ranger Flight, status>

<Skies are clear Ranger Lead>

Ranger flight executed a quick roll and reverse maneuver that put them back in the direction of their primary target. Rodan listened to the radio chatter.

<Sierra Strike engaging ground defenses>

<Triple-A destroyed>

<Deploying first stick>

He spotted several shuttles deliver a string of jet pack equipped troops on top of the old mine. Gunships strafed and bombed enemy troops.

<Enemy fleet disengaging>

<Alpha Strike en route to base>

Rodan knew that the easy part was over. Now it was up to Galeena and the Fifth Aerospace Brigade to go underground and secure the mining facility.

_Good luck._


	8. Anvil

Galeena waved the first platoon sergeant over to her, "Sergeant, sitrep."

"Upper works secured. We counted over thirty dead, no prisoners, ma'am," he said.

"What about our casualties?" asked Galeena.

"Five wounded, the medics are patching them up now...." the sergeant said.

Galeena noted the man's hesitation,"And?"

"Five dead, including lieutenant Var'Tas," the sergeant said.

The lieutenant was a popular leader. He distinguished himself early in training and always lead from the front. She noticed that the other members of the platoon congregated around Specter Williams. She remember how Williams barked orders over the comm net in the middle of the battle. She must have seen the lieutenant go down and took charge over the situation.

"Very well sergeant, see to your platoon," said Galeena.

"Yes, ma'am," the gave Galeena a batarian style salute, an arm across the chest.

Specter Williams stood at the edge of the central shaft that led down to the mining site.

"A hundred meters is a long drop even with jet packs. And whoever is down there must be expecting us," said Williams.

"That's why," Galeena pointed a group of batarian troopers carrying large tripods, "we brought these."

"Drones?" asked Williams.

"Not just any drone. Specialist Durgar, are the mechs ready to go?" asked Galeena.

"Heavy mechs delivered. Just waiting for the go ahead, Major," said Specialist Durgar.

"Cloak and deploy the drones," ordered Galeena.

Three of the drones took off and vanished. The specialist guided them with his omni-tool. A holo showed what the drones saw as they descended down the dark shaft. At the bottom they found a well lit round chamber, about one hundred and fifty meters in diameter. The whole place was full of boxes and assorted mining equipment.

"We got movement," said the specialist.

Galeena peered the specialist shoulder. She noticed an enemy hidden behind a stack of boxes. Another drone caught a glimpse of three more around a automated turret. The specialist guided the drones around the area. He marked each group of enemies. He also noted the a side tunnel wide enough for a rover to drive through.

"Ma'am, the energy cells on those drones won't last long while cloaked," warned the specialist.

"I know. Second platoon get ready to drop. Sergeant, I want first platoon to secure the upper side tunnels. Don't want anyone dropping behind us. Second platoon, we jump on my mark. First platoon, go," ordered Galeena.

First platoon broke into three squads. The jumped down the shaft. As each squad reached the mouth of each tunnel, they activated their jet packs and flew in. Behind them came the lift-loaders carrying four heavy mechs.

"Specialist, de-cloak the drones when the mechs hit the ground. Standard attack pattern. Second platoon, on my mark."

The members of second platoon walked to the edge of the shaft, Specter Williams among them.

"Mark!"

They jumped into the hole. The walls raced past them. Seconds before hitting the ground the jet backs kicked in. Galeena hit the ground, tucked and rolled. The drones blasted enemy squads out of their hiding places. Mechs alternated between heavy machine gun fire and rockets. Rounds from grenade launchers arched through the air. The area reverberated with the thunder of gunfire. Galeena spotted a cluster of enemies setting up a turret to her right. A blue aura surrounded her as she lunged forward. The impact of her biotic charge slammed an enemy soldier against the wall. The other two laid sprawled on the floor. Galeena drew her M-5 Phalax from her holster, aimed the the gun's laser sight on the head of the nearest soldier and pulled the trigger. The enemy's helmet shattered in a spray of ceramic shards and thick red blood. She took out the third target with a shot between the eyes. She took a deep breath and summed her biotic aura. Galeena zipped through the battlefied in a blue blur of motion. She hit one group of enemies after the other.

"Watch the flank, enemy reinforcements inbound," said Williams over the radio.

A group of enemy soldiers emerged from the side tunnel. Their combined fire brought down a heavy mech. It crumpled in a shower of sparks. Two other heavy mechs engaged the newcomers. The drones joined in the fray. Williams took down the leader with a well aimed shot from her sniper rifle. With support from the mechs, second platoon eliminated the threat to the flank.

Galeena looked around and surveyed the carnage. One mech destroyed, a handful of medi-gel ready injuries and three dozen enemy dead.

"Second platoon, secure the area," ordered Galeena.

A platoon of engineers dropped down from above.

"Captain Jur'Gen, I want a complete sweep of this place, top to bottom and sideways. Pirates love their booby traps," she said.

"Yes, ma'am," said captain Jur'Gen. An hour later he emerged from the side tunnel, "Major T'iala, I think you may want to see this."

Galeena followed the captain into the tunnel. It branched into several smaller entrances. Jur'Gen turned into the first one to their right. Inside they found a warehouse full of boxes from floor to ceiling.

"Explosive?," asked Williams.

Jur'Gen popped open a box,"You need a very powerful electric charge to detonate unrefined element zero."

Galeena glanced at the piles of boxes, "How much?"

"A lot, ma'am. About fifteen hundred grams per box. Two hundred boxes and counting," he said.

Galeena turned to Williams, "Well Williams, my people have proven they can take on the tough assignments. And this trove of eezo will certainly make new operations easier."

"I'll pass the word to the Council and the Alliance that the Batarian Free Forces are now in business," said Williams.


	9. Stanoff

Commander Turtman barked orders to one of his squads, "Sergeant Kratos your squad will guard the shuttles. I want them prepped in case we need to leave in a hurry."

"Yes clan chi... sir," said the squad leader.

Turtman shined his flashlight near Mr. Aten, "Your show."

The drell operative turned to his batarian companion, "Mr. Si'nn?"

The batarian shook his head, "Yes, right, we have to go to engineering, get power back to the eezo core."

"Yeah, that's why we brought the power cells. Okay you dirty payaks, you heard him, lets move."

They walked down a series of dark corridors. Turtman left eye twitched, a clear sign that something was wrong. They navigated a maze of decks, stairways, and empty rooms. In over four hundred years, Turtman worked on many ships but not one the size of this one. It took them half an hour to reach the engine room.

Si'nn came to an abrupt stop, "Not good."

"What's wrong?" asked Turtman. Si'nn pointed at the door to the engine room. The holo lock was green, which meant it was active. "Damn, somebody beat us to it. Suggestions?"

"Gentlemen, please wait here while I reconnoiter," said Mr. Aten.

Turtman motioned his men to take cover, "Right."

Mr. Aten cloaked on his way to the engine room. The door slid open. The stale air carried the sounds of kicks, punches, and a short weapon burst followed by a long silence.

Mr. Aten's voice came over the radio,"The area is secured."

The krogans entered the room with Si'nn in tow. They found a salarian, a turian and what looked like three humans scattered about the place.

"Are they dead?" asked Turtman nonchalantly.

"The living have a more ample vocabulary than the dead," said Mr. Aten.

"That wasn't creepy at all, nope," said Si'nn.

"By the look of the armor and weapons I would say that they are mercenaries of some sort," said Mr. Aten.

Turtman ordered his men to secure the area. He noticed an incoming call on one of the mercs omni-tools. He patched his to the merc. Turtman recognized the white tribal paint on the grey scales of the turian that popped on holo.

"Verminus," said Turtman with utter contempt.

The turian smiled, "Turt is that you? It is you! How are you doing you old varren? What brings you to my little corner of the galaxy?"

"I could ask you the same thing, Verminus," said Turtman.

"Oh, just the same old, same old. Got myself a crew, a few contracts. Talking of which, got a real juicy one about two weeks ago . Go to these coordinates and salvage a ship. They forgot to mention it was dreadnaught," Verminus looked around, "The batarians tech is a bit off-spec, Citadel space wise. But it's still a dreadnaught. I mean this baby came fully loaded, so I told myself, Verminus, you could do a lot with a ship like this, out here on the Verge, so I brought in some more of people and we been scoping it out. You like?" Turtman shrugged. "But I take it you're not here for a tour, are you?"

"I'm not," said Turtman.

"Well, you know how it goes, rules of salvage and all of that," said Verminus with a toothy grin.

"Not this time Verminus," said Turtman with a hard squint. He knew Verminus well enough from his days with the Blood Pack. He ran a pure krogan squad out of Omega while Verminus played contract broker for the local Blue Suns branch. The turian would contact him to work an angle on the latest contract, especially when he wanted to take a larger cut of the profits without his bosses knowledge. He also knew that old turian put profit above all else.

"Really? Come on, Turt. I mean I heard you went legit...umm got your clan and everything, but this, this is the big time, old buddy. My employers are paying a lot of creds for this job. If you walk away I can guarantee you a slice, say...ten percent...no wait that's too low, too insulting, lets double it, twenty, yeah that sound right. What do you say?" asked Verminus.

"This is not negotiable. I got orders from straight from Urdnot Wrex himself," said Turtman.

"Clan and planet is it. Umm...okay," Verminus glanced to the side, "Well, I got eyes on the docking bay you came in. That's two shuttles, krogan are a bit beefy so less than full capacity, and I have been bringing people over the past week, plus mechs, that means you're...you're outnumbered. But again, I'm willing to settle things amicably for old time sake. Let's say twenty-five, yeah, twenty-five percent. That's my final offer."

"Not going happen," said Turtman.

A sudden headache exploded in Turman head, as if someone had hit him with a sledgehammer right between the eyes. Every nerve on his body ached. Took him a few seconds to recover his composure.

"Sergeant Kratos to Commander Turtman, do you read me?" asked Kratos over the radio.

"I'm...here," said Turtman.

"We got hit by something. A blue flash and then nothing. But we are back on our feet and ready to fight," said the sergeant.

"Good, we got hostiles on board. Hold your position," said Turtman.

"Understood, sir. Kratos out."

The others came to. Mr. Aten double checked the prisoners.

Turtman contacted Verminus, "Whatever that was, Verminus, we are still here."

Verminus eyes glowed with a bright white light, "We are the masters of your destiny. You will join us or die."


	10. Cargo

A thick curtain of smoke covered the entrance. Periodically, pairs of mechs would march through, guns blazing. A few shotgun blast later and they joined the pile of smoking servos on the floor.

Turtman turned to Mr. Aten, "I think it's time to break out your pyjak moves, Mr. Aten."

Mr. Aten cloaked. More smoke grenades exploded around the entrance. The batarian engineer, Si'nn, curled into a ball in the deepest, smallest corner of the room.

Mr. Aten even yet deep voice came over the radio, "Enemy at platoon strength, plus eight mechs. The leading pair are at ten meters from your location armed with grenade launchers. A well timed attack should disperse their leading elements and give me an opening to strike."

"Got it," said Turman. "Listen up, overload your guns and set for ten meters. I want time on target on my mark," he said to the others.

The other krogan nodded in turn. Turtman got out of cover. A blue sphere appeared on his right hand.

"Whenever you're ready, Mr. Aten," said Turtman.

"Now," said Mr. Aten.

Turtman hurled the biotic sphere down the corridor. Simultaneously, the other krogan fired their overloaded shot guns. Turtman let out a battle roar and charged through the smoke. He jumped over the debris of two more mechs, shot an batarian in the face and backhanded another mercenary into wall. The body slumped to the ground and twitched for a few seconds.

Mr. Aten stepped around another corpse father down the line, "I think it is time to secure the bridge. Mr. Si'nn?"

"Yeah, I'm coming, I'm coming," said the batarian as he gingerly stepped over the bodies.

They double timed it to the bridge. Two krogan took positions on both sides of the doors while a third cut through with his omni-tool. The moment the doors snapped open, the assault force threw a volley of flashbangs inside. A series of loud flashes followed. The krogans stormed the bridge. A few mercenaries fired back but the sheer force of the assault neutralized them. Verminus jumped from the back of the captain's chair. He knocked Turtman flat on his back. The turians sharp talons dug into Turtman throat. Verminus' eyes shone with bright white light.

Verminus screamed, "YOU EXIST TO SERVE US. THE CYCLE WILL CONTINUE!"

"Not today," said Turtman.

He shoved the turian aside with a biotic blast. Verminus bounced back from the floor. Turtman stuck the barrel of his shotgun in Verminus face. One pull of the trigger later and Verminus headless body crumbled in a pool of blue blood.

"I say I missed you, but I didn't," said Turtman. He tapped his another krogan on the shoulder, "Status?"

"Bridge secured, sir," said his second in command.

Mr. Si'nn went over the consoles and gasped.

"Something wrong, Mr. Si'nn," asked Mr. Aten.

"Yeah, something is wrong. There is a thing in cargo bay B and it putting out all kinds of radiation. We have dark energy spikes across the board," said Mr. Si'nn.

Mr. Aten and Turtman moved to Si'nn's position. An object that looked like a small pyramid emanated pulses of white light.

"That, Mr. Si'nn, is a Reaper artifact," declared Mr. Aten.

Si'nn shook his head, "That's why the captain ordered us to abandon ship. We were ordered to stop by a research station out in Orthus. Okay, opening cargo bay doors. Cargo lifters engaged. Damn, it's too heavy. Disengaging artificial gravity."

Diverting all power to the FTL drive including inertial dampeners," said Si'nn. Si'nn rushed to another panel. "You better grab on to something quick."

Turtman did as he was told then radio the team on in the shuttle bay, "Sergeant Kratos, get your team back into the shuttle and hold on, we are about to jump," radioed Turtman.

"But-"

"Just do it!" said Turtman.

"Dampeners at minimum power, navigation computer is online, jumping in three, two, one!"


	11. Redemption

"You ask for too damn much, Jatak," said President Men'lo Im'shar, his back to the conference table. Around the table sat Jatak K'adar leader of the Batarian Assembly, his assistant Anahida S'ura, Major Galeena T'iala former asari commando and military adviser to the Batarian Free Forces, and Specter Ashley Williams on behalf of the Citadel Council. Im'shar turned and slammed his palms on the tabletop, "What do you think is going to happen if I hand over to you our only means of defense, Jatak? Specter Williams, will the Alliance or the Council send a cruiser squadron into the Terminus to protect our colony?"

"Mr. President-"

Im'shar cut off Williams with a wave of his hand, "What about you Anahida? You fought with us during the rebellion. You know what it took to free this world from the grip of the Na'hesit, retaking the home world will take more than three cruisers."

Anahida folded her arms across her chest, "I wish we had a single cruiser back then, Men'lo, let alone three."

"Fine, but why these three?" asked Im'shar.

"Because they are the last survivors of the batarian navy. They should be at the forefront of the fleet that will liberate the home world," said Jatak.

"And meanwhile we will be sitting on our thumbs waiting for the first pirate group or tinpot dictator to raid us. If I'm lucky I'll be sitting in prison after the legislature impeaches me for high crimes against the people of Anhur," said Im'shar.

"We already dispatched one raider fleet, Mr. President. With these cruisers as part of our force we can do even more," said Galeena T'iala.

"Not enough to guarantee my people's safety," countered Im'shar.

Jatak stood up, "Mr. President, this colony, this world, is a symbol for humans and batarians alike. You are the first freely elected batarian leader of a colony split evenly between batarians and humans. Here both races live and work side by side. They fought together to oust the scourge of slavery from your soil just like we are working to cleanse the home world from the stench of its occupation by Reaper remnants. We can do it with your help, Mr. President."

Im'shar shook his head, "Nice words, Jatak, very inspiring. But I can't risk those ships on a fool's errand. Like I said-" a light flashed on the counter top. Im'shar pressed a hand to his ear canal, "What? Are you sure? A bataian dreadnought here?"

"That, Mr. President, is the _Uddhara_ , the _Redemption._ I think our chances of success have improved immeasurably," said Jatak.


	12. Harvest

The ground shuddered beneath his feet. The sound of gunfire echoed down the narrow corridors. Two pairs of eyes blink in confusion.

_Death comes for me._

**OBEY THY MASTERS. OBEY THY LORDS.**

He clutched the side of his head. The voices would not stop. Only death's sweet oblivion would free him from the master's grip.

**DEFEND THIS PLACE WITH YOUR LIFE. YOU WILL NOT FAIL US.**

_The mechs, yes, the mechs will protect us._

He ran away from the sound of the fighting. The doors of the security office snapped opened. Inside twenty-four of LOKI mechs lay in neat rows upon shelves painted in white with black slabs of appliqué armor around the arms and legs. His fingers raced over the control panel. One by one the mechs dropped from the shelves, unfolded, and marched toward battle.

**YOU WILL DEFEAT OUR ENEMIES. YOUR LIFE IS INSIGNIFICANT COMPARE TO THE MAGNITUDE OF OUR PRESENCE.**

His knees buckled underneath him. He drew his pistol and walked to the door. As the doors opened a blast of blue force hurled him back. His body slammed against the far wall with a loud crunch.

**STAND AND FIGHT FOR YOUR MASTERS.**

A distant pain shot trough him. The voices willed his body to move, but the legs refused.

_Broken, I am broken._

He gazed upward at a serene gold flecked face of an asari. The asari leveled a heavy pistol at his head.

_At least, she has come._

"I...am...free," he whispered.

Time stop at the beat of the gunshot.

**YOU MUST OBEY.**

_No, I am freeeee...._


	13. Foxtrot

~~~~The water hummed with the soft whirl of a dozen propellers. A constellation of lights illuminated the crystal clear water. Some came from the divers helmets, others from their vehicles, two large underwater sleds and a slew of diver propulsion vehicles. A pair of drones orbited the group in search of explosives or other hazards. Anahida looked at the low ceiling. Escape, if any, was over three hundred meters behind them. A re-breather failure would kill any of them in a matter of minutes. Ahead of them a kinetic barrier blocked the way. All engines went idle. A cathedral like silence enveloped the commando team, punctuated only by the sound of breaths and heartbeats on each of their own ears. Anahida floated above an abandoned mine cart. _  
_

_How many died on this mine? We talk about how_ _the Hegemony_ _instituted slavery but what about the millions of prisoners pressed into labor in places like this? Paying for one's crimes through work seems noble but how many where falsely accused, how many where rounded up for minor offenses and what about those whose punishment did not fit the crime? We can not go back to this._

"Circuit bypassed. Barrier is down," said the lead engineer.

The words snapped Anahida from her thoughts. The commandos dived deeper into the flooded corridors past rusty instruments of Khar'Shan's industrial age. The group bypassed two more barriers and journeyed over a kilometer to reach their objective. Temperature readings on Anahida's helmet spiked. They reached the a massive wall that separated the flooded mine from their target. There massive pumps recycled millions of gallons of water too cool the machinery on the other side of the wall. Beyond was the largest planetary defense cannon built in this cycle. The Hegemony, with the technology extracted from the Leviathan of Dis, hoped it would protect them from any adversary. But the Reapers struck before its was finished. Now Reaper remnants used it to bombard resistance cells with explosive drop pods filled with husks. No force could land on the planet surface under the threat. Demolitions experts extracted three large cylinders from one of the sleds and put them in position around the pumps. One by one they check and double check the settings.

"All units dialed up, detonation in one hour, forty-five minutes," said the lead of the demolition team.

The team turned to the surface as quickly as the motors of their dpvs allowed. Anahida kept track of to set of descending numbers, distance to the surface and time to detonation.

1.5 km

1:44

One of the dpvs faltered then died. A diver on one of the sleds grabbed the engineer by the belt and dragged him along. They reached the first decompression station where they had to wait several minutes for their bodies to shed built up nitrogen in their tissue. The group pressed on. Drones guided them through the maze of tunnels. One wrong turn could eat precious minutes or trap them in a dead end tunnel. After an hour and a half and two more decompression cycles the group breached the surface on the lake that fed the mines. A platoon of krogan waited on the shore near a parked shuttle.

"Glad to see you made it all back in one piece," said Turtman, the leader of the krogan battlegroup.

Anahida removed her helmet, took several deep breaths and said, "Just in the nick of time."

The ground shook beneath their feet. The explosive shock wave rent the ground in two. Plumes of superheated mud mark the waves progress. A gigantic bubble broke the lake's surface. The lake shore retreated as its contents drained into the wreckage of the cannon.

"Fifteen kilotons will ruin anyone's day," said Tutrman with a hearty laugh. He keyed his comm, "Security team to Redemption, phase one complete."


	14. Mess

The patter of heavy rain pelted the camp. Rodan ducked inside the mess tent a second before lightning split open the sky.

"Boss, grab a tray before food gets cold," yelled Kas, the chief cook from behind the service line. He pointed at a self serve section reserved for turians and quarians filled to the bream with steaming food.

"Will do, sarge," said Rodan while he filled his tray.

Everything, except for the food, and he had no idea how Kas and his crew pulled it off, had gone sideways the moment the air wing landed on the tropical archipelago. First came the local monsoon that brought untold liters of acid rain down their heads. The combination of rain and mud got into everything. No piece of equipment was spared. The handful of techs pulled daily miracles to keep his fighters flying, but that could not last forever. Then came the increasing enemy probes of their defenses. The wing racked up the kills but the constant pressure kept everyone on edge.

_And this was supposed to be a quite sector._

Blitz, the senior batarian flyer and leader of the wing's gunship squadron motioned Rodan to join him at his table.

Rodan noticed the bags under Blitz's four eyes, "Everything alright?"

"Nothing I can't handle, boss. My maintenance people are doing a great job. But," he dug into his plate, some kind of steaming local vegetables mix,"the QRAs are eating my people up. Too many scrambles and not enough rest."

Rodan looked up from his plate, "You're not the only one."

The wing XO, call sign Ice Queen, headed their way, full food plate in one hand, datapad in the other.

She set down the plate,, "Sorry boss, thought I was going to finish this before lunch."

"Queen, you can eat and complain like anyone else," said Rodan.

Chuckles rumbled up and down the long dinner table.

"Right, just that we are down to," she punched up some numbers on the pad, "eighteen birds. Bandit is still in the infirmary, Doc says she won't be out until tomorrow at the earliest and we still have Ratchet's body on ice." The others looked away from Ice Queen.

Rodan ignored Queen's talk about Ratchet corpse. They lost four fighters in an enemy raid the day before yesterday. The rescue crews managed to pull three of the pilots out of the sea but Ratchet did not survive the crash.

Rodan raised an eyebrow, "Wait, eighteen? Why eighteen?"

"Goldan had to cannibalize to birds to keep the others going. We are getting some spare parts, but we haven't managed to set up a micro-manufacturing plant yet, not enough portable generators," said Queen as she shoveled food into her mouth.

Rodan took the datapad and scrolled through the notes, "At least we are on schedule for reinforce- wait vorcha?"

Every head turned toward Rodan.

Queen looked up, "Yes sir. They call themselves the Void Devils. Apparently their parents fought well during the invasion and now they volunteered to help us. Forty-eight fighters in all, plus support crews."

Blitz peaked over Rodan's shoulder, "What about mud movers?"

Queen took the pad back, "We should be getting another group of gunships next week, eight in all."

"We are down to five ships right now," said Blitz.

"Yeah, but K-2 won't be finished until then. With luck we can move your people over there, if the engineers can set up the defenses fast enough. Just another thing the rains keeps mucking up and," she raised her voice, "before anyone asks, we are going to get hit with another weather front the day after tomorrow."

The whole mess hall let out a collective low groan. Loud klaxons cut through the rain.

<ALERT CONDITION ONE-REPEAT ALERT CONDITION ONE-ALL UNITS SCRAMBLE-SCRAMBLE-SCRAMBLE-RAID INBOUND>

All the pilots dropped whatever they were doing and ran for the doors.

_There goes my afternoon._


	15. Ejection

"Ranger Lead, break right!"

Rodan slammed the twin control sticks to the right. A red beam lanced the fighter's port thruster. The craft shuddered. The Oculus interceptor on his tail pressed the attack. Rodan dove to the ground. Stacks of pre-fabs, rushed past his canopy. Another particle beam cut a swath through the jungle. Rodan jinked the fighter in a desperate attempt to shake off his pursuer.

The calm voice of the craft's virtual intelligence came over the speakers in Rodan's helmet, "Starboard thruster at 133%. Overheat imminent. Shut down sequence on stand-by. Please, initiate landing procedure to avoid collision with terrain."

Rodan did the opposite. He pulled into a steep climb. The speed dropped on his helmet's heads-up-display. At the last moment he pulled on the ejection lever. The entire cockpit separated from the stricken fighter. The Oculus rammed the remains. It disintegrated on contact. The VI tried to steer the cockpit clear of the debris only to crash through a window of a nearby pre-fab.

Rodan crawled out of the shattered cockpit. Dark green streaks stained the inside of the building.

_Well, at least I am-_

The appearance of the gigantic mechanical floating eye interrupted his thoughts. Its cracked lens turned a deep red. Rodan dove out of the way as the particle bean disintegrated the cockpit and blasted the remains through the wall. Rodan's rolled right through a hole on the floor. He fell down backwards and landed on a muddy pool at the bottom. The Oculus floated down to the jungle floor. In desperation Rodan leveled his machine pistol at the thing and fired. One of the rounds broke through the lens casing. That opened the way for the rest to punch through the interior. Red sparks arched around the machine, then it detonated. Propelled by the explosion, Rodan slid back several meters. It took him several minutes to regain his composure. Before he got up he checked his omni-tool. The holographic interface fizzled then died.

_Wonderful._

He slipped in the mud as he tried to get up. He stayed faced down for another minute then managed to get up again.

_Thank the ancestors this armor still works. Let see: water filter, check; spare thermal clip, check; omni-tool, busted; radio, short range, useless; emergency rations...._

He glanced at the wreckage of the cockpit.

_Also useless. Weather?_

A loud thunder clap rent the sky open. A curtain of water descended on Rodan head.

_As per usual. Time to bug out. I'm sure that thing radioed for help and I don't want to be around when its buddies show up.  
_

Rodan walked into the jungle trying to put as much distance between himself and his enemies.


	16. Hunted

Rodan's belly rumbled,"Three days with nothing but filtered water will do that to you," he whispered.

The jungle did not deigned to answer. The Occuli destroyed his rations when it blasted the cockpit to oblivion. And due to his alien biology there was nothing on the entire planet fit for consumption. He couldn't even chew on the leaves to calm his hunger. He tapped on his omni-tool to distract him from the hunger. The display flashed several error messages then faded. Rodan looked up a nearby tree, sighed, and climbed it. As he made his way up he snagged his right leg bone spur on a branch.

_Dammit!_

He struggled with the branch. It shook loudly with every tug. Then, through the thick tangle of leaves, he spotted something that sent chills down his spine, a husk. Rodan froze in place, the branch wrapped around his leg. The dessicated animated corpse, once human, looked up with dim cybernetic blue eyes. It's skeletal head tilted to one side then the other.

_Nothing to see here, just branches swaying in the wind. Not a turian climbing a tree like a stupid pyjak._

More husks walked passed the first one. It lead out a confused guttural grunt and joined the others. Rodan waited what too him felt like an eternity then managed to disentangle his leg resumed his climb. Once on top he scanned the horizon. Golden sunlight pierced the thick cloud cover to the east. To the west, several moss covered skyscrapers rose from the jungle floor. Rodan climbed down, careful not snag another branch along the way. By now the legs moved of their own accord, headless of the dull pain in every muscle and tendon. It rained again in the afternoon. Streams of water percolated through the undergrowth. Rodan stepped gingerly around the muddy pools. The promise of shelter in the ruins beckoned. Moss covered ruins littered the landscape. Rodan made out the vague contours of houses and streets. Everywhere gnarled roots grasped at the corpse of the city.

_How many batarians lived here? Thousands, tens of thousands, maybe a million? And how many more slaves scrapped a living under their masters glare?_

Nearby a large building blocked the way. Bullet holes pockmarked the exterior and something blew the main doors clear of its hinges. Larges green stains covered the walls inside. The turian stumbled upon a corpse behind an upturned desk. Four empty eye sockets stared back at him from the dirt covered skeleton. He bent down to check the body.

"Maybe he has a spare thermal clip or two," he said out loud.

The answer came by way of the cold barrel of a gun pressed against the base of his skull.


	17. Captured

"Group Captain Rodan Quintus, Batarian Expeditionary Force," said Rodan.

The man kept the cold barrel of his gun pressed against the base of Rodan's skull, "Gun." Rodan slowly removed his machine pistol from its holster and handed it back. "Move," said the other in a thick bass voice.

His captor led him through a maze of service tunnels, subbasements, and corridors that ran under the city. Rodan spotted signs of fighting, pockmarked walls, scorch marks, and collapsed entrances. The rumbling in his stomach turned into a dull, persistent ache, a reminder of the void within. Their journey ended in an empty room illuminated by a single neon strip light that hanged from the ceiling.

His guard shoved Rodan into the room, "Get in."

He caught a glimpse of his captor. Four hallow angry eyes with deep dark bags under each stared back at him. Before he could speak his batarian captor slammed the metal door millimeters from his nose. Rodan surveyed the room. The bare concrete cube lacked any furnishing aside from the light fixture. He selected a corner opposite the door and sat down to wait. The harsh light eroded his sense of time. He tried to bring his omni-tool back to life but it rebooted then refused to restart. Sometime later someone shook his shoulder.

"Get up," said the voice.

Rodan bleary eyes opened. He wasn't alone. A batarian in heavy armor pulled him off from the floor and sat him down in a chair. Across a folding metal table sat another batarian, his face cloaked in the darkness beyond the reach of the harsh light from above. The sharp stabs of a headache radiated from the back of his skull to the front in painful spikes. Rodan blinked three times fast to clear the spots from his eyes.

"Who are you?"

Rodan's tongue stuck to the bottom of his mouth, "Water."

"What?"

"Water, I need water," said Rodan. Someone produced a bottle somewhere to his left. He gulped down the contents. A wave of cool pleasure ran down his mouth and throat but when the liquid reached his stomach it felt like a punch in the gut.

"Who are you?" repeated the man across from him.

"Group Captain Rodan Quintus, First Aerospace Wing, Batarian Expeditionary Force," said Rodan.

"And what are you doing here?"

"I was shot down, four, maybe five days ago by an Oculi, big round eye thing that shoots red beams...."

"I know what an Oculi is. Why are you here?"

"Came looking for shelter, maybe a way to communicate with the BEF. Found...found a corpse instead."

"Still doesn't tell me what are you doing here?"

"Here, well you brought me here so...here I am."

Rodan saw movement in the corner of his eye. His interrogator raised a hand.

"Mr. Quintus, what is a turian doing on this planet?"

"Oh, well I got hired to...," he took a shallow breath, "to train and lead...to train and lead the BEF's fighter force."

"So you're mercenary?"

Rodan nodded.

"So this force is a mercenary force?"

"No, not really. The Batarian Assembly hired, ermm...consultants. Putting together an army to take back an entire planet from Reaper forces takes a certain set of skills."

"Do you have any proof of what your saying?"

"My omni-tool is busted but you must have seen them, right? The Oculi, the Harvesters. We been fighting off their constant attacks for the past month. One of them shut me down. And you know, here I am." Somebody grabbed his wrist, "Hey."

"It will only take a minute," said the interrogator.

They scanned his damaged omni-tool and let go of his wrist. The batarian guard pulled him away from the chair while the others left with the other pieces of furniture. The sunken eyes batarian then closed the door behind him. Rodan crawled to the same corner of the room the guards found him in. Later he woke to the sound of a heated argument on the other side of the door.

"He is severely malnurished."

"Can you do something about it?"

"Of course not, he can't eat our food. If we don't get him back to his people he will die."

"We are still checking out the data we took from his omni-tool."

"Then you better hurry."

Again, sometime later for Rodan had no idea how much time had passed or even how he sat at the same chair across the same table interrogated by the same person.

"Why are you here?"

"I told you, I was hired to-"

"What is the BEF mission on Khar'shan?"

"To liberate the planet...A Free World for a Free People," Rodan said.

"Can you do it?"

Rodan smacked his lips, "We are doing it now."

"And then what?"

"I don't know, I'm not batarian, not up to me. But I figured if...if you can get me in contact with my people they can help you out. I mean how long have you stuck down here? But I'm no use to you stuck down here."

"We shall see."

Rodan returned to his corner. A swaying motion woke him. Something stuck out of his arm. He was too weak to move. Then a familiar face hovered over him. Gold flecks swam in a deep blue sea.

"Major...Galeena?"

"You're going home Rodan, you are going home."


	18. Hive

The walls of the narrow concrete corridor shook with the bark of shotgun blast and the growls of the pressing horde of Husks.

"You know, I am having a great time here," shouted Turtman between volleys of fire, "But we are running thermal clips here and I don't think we have time to make a quick run to the store to get some more."

"Turtman, anti-matter charges are not firecrackers. If I mess this up we will be annihilated, literally," barked the batarian engineer setting up the anti-matter bomb.

Two bullets thumped into the krogan's kinetic barrier, "Less talking and more arming."

"Grrr!"

At the end of the hall a pair of Cannibals, misshaped blobs of flesh stitched together from several batarians, fired long burst to cover the advance of another wave of skeletal Husks. The Husks swarmed over the shattered corpses of their predecessors and pushed forward headless of the losses.

A call came through Turtman's comm, "Dagger One, status report."

"Knee-deep in husks as the moment. The engineers are working on the-"

"Incoming!" warned the krogan soldier as he pulled Turtman to safety.

Explosions blasted chunks of concrete. Several Cannibals emerged from the dust cloud. Turtman got from under the body of his underling and reached out with his open palm at the nearest enemy. A blue nimbus surrounded the Cannibal, lifted it from the floor and slammed him against another. Turtman jammed the bayonet at the end of his shotgun into the bloated face of another then pulled the trigger. The blast shredded it and the one right behind him. The soldier that pulled Turtman to the floor moaned in pain.

Turtman pointed at the fallen krogan, "Jakurt, take him out of here. Sergeant Kurdon with me."

"Yes sir," said Kurdon.

Kurdon tossed a Turtman a thermal clip. Turtman covered Jakurt as he pulled the injured korgan from the line of fire.

"Dagger One, come in," said the voice on the comm.

"Still here and still waiting," said Turtman.

"Got it," said the batarian engineer.

"Wait is over Herakles. We are falling back to the outer perimeter," said Turtman. Turtman extended his hand then closed his fist swiftly. A dark blue globe filled the middle of the corridor. Husk were torn apart by the shearing forces of the singularity. Turtman took a deep break then turned to Kurdon, "Deploy the barriers and fall back."

Kurdon tossed several boxes to the floor. Each broke up into six pieces, three of each floated near the ceiling. Once in position they projected a blue hexagonal energy field that connected to the three bottom pieces on the floor. Something to delay the enemy long enough for Dagger One to clear the area. The mix group of krogan and batarians ran down the labyrinth of service tunnels that crisscrossed the ruins of Axum. Turtman pressed on even as his muscles ached. That last biotic maneuver took its told.

"Sir?" asked Kurdon.

"Am alright! Just move already!" shouted Turtman.

A shock wave sped down the tunnel as the anti-matter bomb went off. Everybody dropped to the floor. The corridor collapsed twenty meter behind them.

"Well...that was something," said Turtman.

They reached the surface twenty minutes later. A gigantic dogfight swirled above the skies of Axum. Friendly fighters dueled with enemy Oculi. Then a barrage of orbital fire came down on the former Axum Sports Arena. The secondary barriers around the arena's dome deflected the first rounds but did not last long under the thunderous barrage. It flickered then vanished. Huge columns of dust erupted from the ground as the orbital strike grounded the enemy base to dust.

"One down, three dozen more to go," said Turtman with a toothy grin.


	19. R&R

Galeena read the latest battlefield reports on a datapad while eating breakfast. The Fifth Brigade, her brigade, had done well in recent battles, but got mauled in the fighting and had to be pulled back from the the front lines. They finally made some head way with the use of of some Alliance tech that tracked Reaper signals. Over the last months they destroyed three regional control nodes via orbital bombardment. But the enemy figured out a counter by the use of multiple decoy sites. It would be up to her boys and girls, as she liked to think of them, to dig them out.

Then you had the endless stream of refugees with all the attendant problems of logistic and security that came with them. The Alliance provided scanners to weed out indoctrinated agents but some got through. Two nights ago one suicide bomber blew up an aid station while two other were shot down en route to a depot. Galeena shook her head as the memory of the stench of viscera mixed with smoke crawled up her nostrils. She pushed away the bowl of cereal.

Her omni-tool buzzed with a new message:

> MS. MIRANDA LAWSON & MR. THEODORE CARLOS THOMPSON-RAMOS CORDIALLY INVITE YOU AND A COMPANION TO THE CELEBRATION OF OUR WEDDING ON THE SHORES OF LAKE KATARN, HORIZON 07/10/2197.

Added to the message was a note:

> P.S. HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE~KELLY

Galeena hid her deep violet blush behind her datapad. She remembered Ms. Chambers from her last deployment to Horizon. She took a deep breath and smiled. It was time for some well deserved rest and recuperation. Although with Kelly around she would get neither. 


	20. Waiting

Four of pairs of eyes scanned multiple holo-screens in the dark. They displayed a panoply of intelligence reports from troops movements to market reports. At the center of this web of information sat the Commander. Nobody  under his command knew him by any other name. For the last decade he led a large number of survivors inside an old batarian military base deep within a moon of the gas giant Verush. The base was meant as a fall back position in case of a war with one of the Citadel places. A place where the leadership of the Hegemony in-exile would continue the fight against their enemies. But none of those for whom the base was meant to protect ever escaped Khar'Shan when the Reapers attacked. Soon after they struck the Hierarchy's bases on Verush's moons. They destroyed most of them.

But not all of them.

Not this one.

As the Reapers spread around the galaxy, the Commander gathered the survivors, expanded the existing facilities, trained the men under his command, and waited.

From his lonely perch he witnessed the defeat of the Reapers on Palaven and Earth. He saw the mad dash by Balak to retake Khar'Shan, only tob e obliterated by the Reaper as they retreated. He observed as the Reaper remnants continued their brutal occupation.

Then he acted.

He sent out feelers through the former regime fragmented intelligence network. Small teams of covert operatives fanned out across the galaxy to gather key resources. He cultivated links with key resistance leaders on Khar'Shan. His agents infiltrated pirate bands, slaver groups, and political advocacy groups.  All the while he waited, in the darkness.

Until now.

A voice only message came through the comm, "Package delivered and primed for activation."

The Commander smiled. The waiting was almost over.


End file.
